When you pre - order your iPhone 4S Friday , that mean you ’ve produce a week to anticipate life with your new telephone before its October 14 release date . But if you ’re an exist iPhone drug user , it means you ’ve also got to make plan on what to do with your soon - to - be redundant smartphone .
The good news : You ’ve get plenty of options , starting with the most obvious pick — turn that old iPhone into a slightly used , slightly thick iPod touch . Your calling capacity and 3G / EDGE connectivity may have moved on to the iPhone 4S , but that older speech sound of yours can still connect to Wi - Fi and still run iOS apps . ( And if you elevate toiOS 5next hebdomad , you ’ll tot even more capability to your purportedly defunct phone . ) Should anything go wrong with your unexampled phone , it never hurts to have a backup in soft scope .
But if you ’re ready to let go of that iPhone 4 or iPhone 3GS , here are a few more choice deserving considering .
eBay was offering big money for used iPhones.
Return it to Apple or your wireless carrier
Apple feature a Reuse and Recycling Program ; earlier this week , the program was offering to pay up up to $ 200 for a lightly used , top - of - the - line iPhone 4 . ( That payoff — which comes in the form of an Apple gift card , and not cold , hard cash — drops off for phone with scuffs , scratches , and water harm . )
Verizon alsohas a trade - in programthat lets you get an online appraisal on your current earphone ; the society will pay you that value in the grade of a Verizon endowment carte du jour . AT&T , meanwhile , has its ownReuse & Recycleprogram — that company ask you to bring your old telephone to one of its stores .
Even Sprint — which has never sold an iPhone until now — is offer $ 210 for a 16 GB iPhone 4that was originally sold by the other two wireless companies .
eBay was offering large money for used iPhones .
Sell it to a third-party reseller
Want to be intimate what makes an iPhone launch such a circus ? It ’s not just the buyers . While bunch delineate up outside Manhattan ’s iconic Apple Store last year to purchase the then - raw iPhone 4 , they emerge to be greet by dozens upon dozens of representatives from electronics resale companies , offering John Cash for the user ’s freshly fling iPhone 3GS .
You do n’t have to hurdle the hustle - and - bustle outside a store to get disembarrass of your iPhone , though : There are plenty of ship’s company willing to do the job online . Many resellers — among themNextWorth , Gazelle , YouRenew , andCashforiPhones.com — will gladly give to take your iPhone off your hand . in the first place this calendar week , offers ranged between $ 160 and $ 314 for a 32 GB iPhone 4 in good condition ; do n’t expect those crack to last as older iPhones get down flood the resale market .
If you ’re wondering what it ’s like to sell your aging electronics to a reseller , Macworldcontributor David Chartier ’s walk - through of selling his original iPadis deserving a read . It ’s also a estimable idea to do an online check - up on the companies offer to purchase your iPhone to see which one have good reputations and which have a string of unsatisfied customers . Start by checking with theBetter Business Bureau website . eBay , NextWorth , and YouRenew are all accredit with the organization ; Gazelle is not , though the bureau has n’t show any complaints against that company . CashforiPhones.com is n’t accredited either ; its parent company , Laptop & Desktop Repair , has been the topic of 142 ailment with the bureau during the last three year .
“ They ’re unspoilt for the environment and good for the budget , ” Katherine Hutt , a spokeswoman for the Better Business Bureau , said of companies that corrupt and refurbish iPhones . “ But know who you ’re shell out with . ”
Given the amount of legwork that goes into crack up on resellers , you may find it promiscuous to trade your unwanted iPhone yourself , either through Craigslist or eBay . It could be more financially rewarding , too , as you’re able to determine your own toll .
No matter how you sell your sure-enough iPhone — whether via a reseller or all by yourself — you’ll need to make trusted that the phone is stripped of any personal datum before it leave behind your hands . Apple has some prettyclear instruction on how to efface your phone ’s remembering and stage setting . Just go to the configurations - > General - > Reset , and touch the Erase All Content and configurations button . You ’ll also require to warrant you ’ve indorse up all the data on the gimmick first , so that you’re able to restore it to your new phone . iTunes should do that when you synchronise it before buying your young phone , but to be extra sure , select the iPhone in iTunes ’ Source list , right - snap on it , and prefer Back Up .
Passing it along
throw your old iPhone to a admirer or relation may have somewhat less allure now that Apple and the phone companies will begiving away the iPhone 3GS for free(provided , of track , that you sign up a new two - yr divine service contract ) . But an iPhone 4 will still make a nice bridge player - me - down , especially for people who do n’t want to pay $ 99 to corrupt a new iPhone 4 . Before handing off the phone , though , make trusted that your lucky recipient really want to take on a two - year commitment with a wireless carrier . And do the phone back - up and erasing steps outlined above .
If you do opt for the giveaway itinerary , remark thatAT&TandVerizonwill allow you transplant your exist contract — phone and all — to a third company .
Jailbreak it
With the many improvements that will get with iOS 5 , iPhone users now have fewer understanding to jailbreak their phones . Some still remain , though : give full entree to the iPhone ’s stark filing cabinet system is attractive to the technically inclined so that they can easily transfer files between their computers and iPhone . With a jailbroken and unsecured iPhone you could use your phone oversea without incurring roaming charge . And clever jade exist so that with the correct cable you may project the iPhone ’s total interface to a TV or projector .
The risk is that not only are you breaking your permit agreement , but you ’re now engage in the cat - and - mouse secret plan . You jailbreak , Apple releases an update that disables that jailbreak , and you either do n’t revise your phone for the latest features ( or , more significantly , security fixes ) or update and waitress for the jailbreakers to add up up with a fresh way .
Macworld ’s Christopher Breen contribute to this report .
